On the tree color change, just guessing, radiation. Look at pics of Chernobyl after the event. The trees turned white.

Quoting: AC 5341

Oh my.

"God forbid we should ever be 20 years without such a rebellion. The people cannot be all, & always, well informed... If they remain quiet under such misconceptions it is a lethargy, the forerunner of death to the public liberty... Let them take arms... What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots & tyrants. " - Thomas Jefferson in 1787

Seriously, folks, do y'all really think if all those trees were dying because of radiation, or ANYthing toxic enough to create a mass tree kill like that, that first, the people, DEQ and OEP, and especially the media wouldn't be all over it?

People are working in that area without even using PPDs. Do you know the implications of allowing that to happen if it was that unsafe?

If you notice,some are green, some are reddish brown, and some are gray (looks white). Soon, they will all be gray. I live surrounded by these trees. They are NOT dying or dead.

Here is some more information from the Assumption Parish Blog-Frequest Questions and answers:

Question in bold.

Areas of concern due to mandatory evacuation:·air quality in community, around sinkhole, Texas Brine cavern, water well(s), bubbling sites in Bayou Corne and Grand Bayou?

DEQ has continued to conduct air sampling in the area, and DEQ worked with the Office of Conservation in having an EPA overflight to detect significant concentrations of natural gas, radioactivity and chemicals in the area – that flight, as well as DEQ monitoring, show no harmful concentrations Per LDEQ:

DEQ, EPA, Assumption Parish OEP and Sage Environmental have been conducting air monitoring at an unprecedented rate in the area and found absolutely no cause for health concern related to air pollution. The Department of Health and Hospitals is reviewing all data and confirms this fact. All of DEQ’s final data is posted on the DEQ website developed specifically for the Bayou Corne incident. [link to www.deq.louisiana.gov] It is worth noting that the amount of natural gas in the bubbles in the bayou is so slight that infrared cameras cannot “see” hydrocarbon vapors coming from them, and these cameras are able to see vapors from a cigarette lighter, so you can see how miniscule the amount of gas coming from these bubble sites really is.

Here is some more information from the Assumption Parish Blog-Frequest Questions and answers:

Question in bold.

Areas of concern due to mandatory evacuation:·air quality in community, around sinkhole, Texas Brine cavern, water well(s), bubbling sites in Bayou Corne and Grand Bayou?

DEQ has continued to conduct air sampling in the area, and DEQ worked with the Office of Conservation in having an EPA overflight to detect significant concentrations of natural gas, radioactivity and chemicals in the area – that flight, as well as DEQ monitoring, show no harmful concentrations Per LDEQ:

DEQ, EPA, Assumption Parish OEP and Sage Environmental have been conducting air monitoring at an unprecedented rate in the area and found absolutely no cause for health concern related to air pollution. The Department of Health and Hospitals is reviewing all data and confirms this fact. All of DEQ’s final data is posted on the DEQ website developed specifically for the Bayou Corne incident. [link to www.deq.louisiana.gov] It is worth noting that the amount of natural gas in the bubbles in the bayou is so slight that infrared cameras cannot “see” hydrocarbon vapors coming from them, and these cameras are able to see vapors from a cigarette lighter, so you can see how miniscule the amount of gas coming from these bubble sites really is.

can you show me how many times in our history that our government knew about a danger that could really harm people and acted on that knowledge to inform people before the people were harmed and to protect lives?

was it agent orange?ddt?early birth control pills?gmo foods?that drug women took in the 60's that caused all those birth defects?dangers of the hpv vaccine?asbestos?tobacco?economic bubbles ready to collapse?corexit?katrina?shall i go on???

Have at it if it makes you feel better. I know there is corruption and lying, but I am telling you that every big wig from Texas Brine and ALL of these very agencies that are supposed to be lying to the people have been AT that sinkhole, so they are in effect, according to you, lying to themselves as well. A LOT of eyes are on this situation, and if that is radioactive material killing those trees, then other agencies NOT in our corrupt little state would be raising hell. Not everyone can be bought, or fooled.

Don't lecture me about Katrina. I lived through that and that was an entirely different situation. Handled 100% wrong, yes, but ENTIRELY different.

As far as the other crap from the 60s...hey, things have improved somewhat, if you haven't noticed.

Have at it if it makes you feel better. I know there is corruption and lying, but I am telling you that every big wig from Texas Brine and ALL of these very agencies that are supposed to be lying to the people have been AT that sinkhole, so they are in effect, according to you, lying to themselves as well. A LOT of eyes are on this situation, and if that is radioactive material killing those trees, then other agencies NOT in our corrupt little state would be raising hell. Not everyone can be bought, or fooled.

Don't lecture me about Katrina. I lived through that and that was an entirely different situation. Handled 100% wrong, yes, but ENTIRELY different.

As far as the other crap from the 60s...hey, things have improved somewhat, if you haven't noticed.

Quoting: Patassa

Thanks for speaking up ! Always appreciate hearing from someone local. For those of us a bit farther away, all we can do is speculate. Is that what those trees typically look like ?

my speculation comes from previous reports of radioactivity levels measured and reported early in this thread and the fact that nuke waste was reported as stored in that particular well.

Have at it if it makes you feel better. I know there is corruption and lying, but I am telling you that every big wig from Texas Brine and ALL of these very agencies that are supposed to be lying to the people have been AT that sinkhole, so they are in effect, according to you, lying to themselves as well. A LOT of eyes are on this situation, and if that is radioactive material killing those trees, then other agencies NOT in our corrupt little state would be raising hell. Not everyone can be bought, or fooled.

Don't lecture me about Katrina. I lived through that and that was an entirely different situation. Handled 100% wrong, yes, but ENTIRELY different.

As far as the other crap from the 60s...hey, things have improved somewhat, if you haven't noticed.

Quoting: Patassa

Thanks for speaking up ! Always appreciate hearing from someone local. For those of us a bit farther away, all we can do is speculate. Is that what those trees typically look like ?

my speculation comes from previous reports of radioactivity levels measured and reported early in this thread and the fact that nuke waste was reported as stored in that particular well.

Quoting: AC 5341

I believe the local, she know what they normally look like, and if she says they are normal, as far as I am concerned the tree's going grey is a non issue. Also unfortunately the person earlier that mentioned all this gas may be natural and could take ages to clear is probably right. Parts of louisiana have had problems with natural gas bubbling up before. Who knows what unstablised it. Maybe bad weather maybe drilling. I just hope the venting works nice and quick. As for the sink hole and that cavern, something seems off, but we will just need to see what happens, hopefully they will be able to do something about whatever is pumping it's self out.

Have at it if it makes you feel better. I know there is corruption and lying, but I am telling you that every big wig from Texas Brine and ALL of these very agencies that are supposed to be lying to the people have been AT that sinkhole, so they are in effect, according to you, lying to themselves as well. A LOT of eyes are on this situation, and if that is radioactive material killing those trees, then other agencies NOT in our corrupt little state would be raising hell. Not everyone can be bought, or fooled.

Don't lecture me about Katrina. I lived through that and that was an entirely different situation. Handled 100% wrong, yes, but ENTIRELY different.

As far as the other crap from the 60s...hey, things have improved somewhat, if you haven't noticed.

Quoting: Patassa

you didn't disprove anything i saidthere are always localsat every eventinvolved in everything that happens are "normal" peopleyet it still happens

show me what has improvedgo ahead, put your money where your mouth isshow me where government now preemptively protects peopleand doesn't react after the fact instead, after people are harmedplease, cite examples

Have at it if it makes you feel better. I know there is corruption and lying, but I am telling you that every big wig from Texas Brine and ALL of these very agencies that are supposed to be lying to the people have been AT that sinkhole, so they are in effect, according to you, lying to themselves as well. A LOT of eyes are on this situation, and if that is radioactive material killing those trees, then other agencies NOT in our corrupt little state would be raising hell. Not everyone can be bought, or fooled.

Don't lecture me about Katrina. I lived through that and that was an entirely different situation. Handled 100% wrong, yes, but ENTIRELY different.

As far as the other crap from the 60s...hey, things have improved somewhat, if you haven't noticed.

Quoting: Patassa

you didn't disprove anything i saidthere are always localsat every eventinvolved in everything that happens are "normal" peopleyet it still happens

show me what has improvedgo ahead, put your money where your mouth isshow me where government now preemptively protects peopleand doesn't react after the fact instead, after people are harmedplease, cite examples

Quoting: Anonymous Coward 23593671

The only example I have time to give you is the most important to me at this point.

As some know, the cavern was entered,and everyone was waiting for results of if there is damage, and the cause.

Owners of the cavern, Texas Brine, took it upon themselves to hold a press conference at 10:30 pm last night,and informed the press that it (they) determined that there was damage to the cavern, and that damage was caused by the earthquakes we are having.....effectively relieving Texas Brine of responsibility. The local and state officials, nor the residents of Assumption Parish were notified of this conclusion, or of the press conference. Here are just two of the news reports that was a shock to everyone.

BAYOU CORNE- Scientists discovered a salt brine cavern, deep under Assumption Parish, has been damaged. Seismic activity in the area is blamed.

"The cavern damage was caused by an external source," a spokesperson for Texas Brine said in a news release late Monday.

In response, Assumption Parish Officials, hit back with this statement, and IMO, a relatively forcefull statement:

[link to assumptionla.com] 9:30 a.m. Assumption Officials Respond to Texas Brine’s Press ReleaseSeptember 25, 2012 //Assumption Parish officials have been advised by DNR that their exploratory well observers have confirmed that brine cavern #3 has failed. Per Texas Brine’s press release, “The tool used to measure cavern depth bottomed out at approximately 4,000 feet – a point estimated to be 1,300 feet higher than the floor had been measured prior to the cavern closure in 2011. This preliminary finding indicates that some type of dense material has fallen to the bottom of the cavern. A sample of the material has been retrieved from the cavern floor and will be analyzed. The retrieved material does not appear to be consistent with material normally found in brine cavern operations. We expect that the sonar inspection that is currently being conducted will provide a more detailed image of the cavern’s interior conditions and the possible source of the material at its base.” This statement confirms the suspicions of parish officials: Texas Brine Oxy Cavern #3 had failed.

It has come to our attention that Texas Brine’s press release was released to the media at 10:31 p.m. last night, prior to consulting with parish and state officials. Parish officials are not in agreement with Texas Brine’s preliminary conclusion that their well was damaged by “regional-scale seismic activity” (earthquakes). Given the confirmation of the failure of Texas Brine’s cavern, the parish will continue to look to Texas Brine for accountability and evacuee assistance.

The mandatory evacuation order will remain in place.Parish and state officials are working together to host and coordinate a public meeting to provide additional and updated information in the near future. The time and date of this meeting will be circulated via blog posts, press release, and phone calls to residents. If you have any questions, please feel free to call the Assumption Parish Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Preparedness at 985-369-7386 or stop by the command post.

Now, I consider our local and state officials Government. Maybe you don't. And I see in that statement, concern for the people, rather than the corporation. Maybe you won't.

I am not out to disprove anything you say, nor will I bother trying. Things have improved dramatically over the years, though at the cost of lives. Although the chemicals you refer to may still be in use in some circumstances, the warnings are there. The knowledge and the choice is there. I don't know much about asbestos, agent orange, or ddt, but I know it isn't being used to the degree it once was.

I also know that warnings are placed on every single pack of cigarettes yet it is still a multimillion dollar industry BECAUSE people still CHOOSE to smoke and support that industry, and I know that Officials more readily call for mandatory evacuations despite the backlash they will get, and people still CHOOSE to ignore those warnings.

Parish and state officials will hold a briefing to update affected residents on the recent developments of Texas Brine’s Oxy Cavern #3 at 6:30 p.m. tonight at the Unified Command Post in Bayou Corne at Sportsman’s Landing.

“Texas Brine has elected to let its own interests guide a premature conclusion lacking sufficient supporting analysis – breaking away from the ongoing cooperative effort to apply scientific principles to determine causes and impacts, guided by the need for accurate data and analysis to best protect public safety,” Welsh said. “The investigation and the remediation for environmental damages will be driven by the best science available and carried out to standards set by the state of Louisiana to ensure the safety of the Bayou Corne community – and will not be driven by Texas Brine’s timetable or concerns about corporate liability.”

The new requirements for Texas Brine include turning over the studies and data the company claims show seismic activity as the cause for the collapse, immediate reporting of changes to cavern status and immediate reporting of activity logs, well logs and test results generated by the company’s activities involving the cavern. To ensure transparency to the public, Texas Brine must immediately report any change in the cavern conditions to the Office of Conservation. The Office stands ready to issue penalties or other fines to Texas Brine should it not comply.

You know what is REALLY funny? Not a SINGLE Earthquake in that area is on the USGS map of earthquaks! Not even one! So if they are having all of this seismic activity, WHY hasn't our countries USGS picked up the activity? A little suspicious don't you all think. Anybody know of an earthquake site for Lousiana?????

You know what is REALLY funny? Not a SINGLE Earthquake in that area is on the USGS map of earthquaks! Not even one! So if they are having all of this seismic activity, WHY hasn't our countries USGS picked up the activity? A little suspicious don't you all think. Anybody know of an earthquake site for Lousiana?????

You might check with this guy, part of the quoted statement above, that was left out, but pretty significant:

On Tuesday, USGS Senior Adviser for Earthquake and Geologic Hazards William Leith stated that USGS consensus is that the seismic activity detected in the area is a consequence of the cavern collapse, not the cause of the collapse and sinkhole/slurry area.

Overnight, there was a 30’ x 50’ slough in on the SE side of the sinkhole (towards Texas Brine). The slough in took many trees and part of the road that was built to park excavators on to resume cleanup activities. This area has never sloughed in before as opposed to previous slough-ins that have taken place in the same spots along the embankment of the sinkhole.

Bayou Corne residents get briefed on sinkhole from last nights meeting!

More than 75 members of the community listened as representatives from state and local agencies explained a plan of action for cleanup around the sinkhole and cavern. That plan will include an additional three wells that will vent and flare natural gas in the area over the next few weeks.

Parish property assessors have been approaching residents in the area and offering steep discounts in property taxes in exchange for a decrease in property value assessment. Some real estate assessors also joined the meeting and offered their services to assess property values. Most viewed these people as predatory and some feel like the parish is trying to hurt them and their chances for a fair return on the value of their property, should some civil lawsuit arise.

Could this be from a different salt dome or gas pocket? The whole area along the coast is riddled with them.

"God forbid we should ever be 20 years without such a rebellion. The people cannot be all, & always, well informed... If they remain quiet under such misconceptions it is a lethargy, the forerunner of death to the public liberty... Let them take arms... What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots & tyrants. " - Thomas Jefferson in 1787

This sloughing is following a clockwise path around the sinkhole that began on the western edge last week. Movement of the floating debris toward the center of the sinkhole area was observed during this morning’s event. Efforts to begin removing the surface debris have been postponed due to this most recent sloughing incident.